Burda Style For people who sew

One thing I couldn’t help but notice during the month long fashion week marathon was that the undisputed shoe choice of the season was Miu Miu’s glitter booties. Editors, stylists, show attendees – no one seemed to be able to escape the allure of the sparkly shoe. Ask most girls and we will tell you that we never really outgrow our childhood love of all things sparkled, spangled and glittered, so it makes sense that this girlish fantasy manifested into shoe form would make even the most matured of fashion hearts swoon. After seeing these and other glittery versions by Louboutin, Marc Jacobs, and Versus, I thought to myself (as most of you probably have at one time or another) hey I could do that – or at least I could try!

I can’t help, but be TOTALLY charmed by The Man Repeller. From the first time I read Leandra’s site, I knew that my blog roll had just gotten way more fun. The more-is-more fashion philosophy, the hilarious photos and maybe my favorite of all, the “arm party”! If you are not familiar with her fantastic blog, I highly recommend it – she has an awkwardly endearing way of making serious fashion seriously fun.

In true Man-Repeller spirit, I decided why make a single recycled bracelet project, when I could make an “arm party”??

Today we bring you two great DIYs from two great DIY outlets! The first comes courtesy of our good friends at Etsy, whose “How Tuesday” column always gets us inspired. The second comes from new BurdaStyle guest blogger Kat Roberts (aka Whitehaus) and her blog We Can Re-Do It! which is filled with great projects for you to try! So enough with the talking – let’s get started on these projects, shall we?

A few weeks ago Jamie, Martyna and I decided to try a little DIY project of our own. Inspired by a book we recently received in the office, India Flint’s Eco Colour, we embarked on a eco dyeing adventure in my tiny apartment in Brooklyn. For our project we decided to focus on three different types of dyeing: fruit-based, onion skin and flower smashing. These are three of the easiest techniques and a good starting point to try your hand at eco-conscious dyeing.

If you’re looking for a quick, easy project that’s great for both kids and adults, Lotta Jansdotter has the solution! Using her son’s drawings of super heroes and monsters, Lotta created adorable soft dolls using transfer paper and lightweight cotton fabric. Watch the video to see how simple this project is and try it out for yourself! It’s a great way to spend an afternoon getting creative with kids of all ages (and adults, too!).

How many buckets, plastic bins and sacks of fabric scraps do you have lying around? Leftovers from garment projects, dresses gone wrong or pieces that you were sure you’d use (eventually) but have instead ended up relegated to some long lost corner of your sewing nook. Well, get ready to break out those banished scraps because in honor of Earth Day I’ve pulled together some really fun ideas and tutorials from around the crafty web to show you just how many ways you can put those leftover pieces to good use!

With Valentine’s Day coming up on Monday, we’ve been scouring the web for some ideas of what to wear on the day of the year dedicated to love. When we came across this amazing little DIY tutorial from ModCloth, our hearts just melted!

What’s better than crafting your own one-of-a-kind garment? Making the fabric you use to craft your super one-of-a-kind garment! After posting yesterday’s prints and patterns inspiration, I thought it might be great to show you guys a few ways to make those prints yourself. Fabric companies don’t always bestow us with the most…uh, fashionable prints (dinosaurs and stars, anyone?) and often times the idea we see in our heads is hard to find in real life. I think that’s the reason many of us sew, to make the things we want but can’t find anywhere. Check out these ideas – from digital printing to stenciling – for taking that print you desire and turning it into your own unique fabric!

The snow was really coming down in New York this morning. Although it’s pretty to watch from inside the office, it’s quite another story to be outside in it.

To be honest, I don’t like much about winter except winter accessories. Scarves, hats, gloves – I have too many to count. One accessory that I’m really loving for winter (and that’s making it a little easier to bear…) is the faux fur scarf. Dries Van Noten made my favorite of the season and I’ve been on the hunt to find one. Then I thought to myself – that has to be so easy to make! So I dug around the internet and pulled together a few tutorials that show you how to make really simple faux fur winter accessories as well as some tips from our guest bloggers for the best ways to work with the fabric.

I believe the last time I used safety pins as a fashion statement I was an angsty 15 year old slashing up tee shirts and pinning the band logos to the back of my jean jacket, switching them out as my musical tastes evolved (or devolved, depending on who you ask).

As much as the slashed and pinned look has been a sort of trademark of the anti-establishment rebellion of the 70’s and 80’s punk movement, the look – or rather just the safety pin itself – has carried over into high-end fashion, evolving in a sort of avant-garde, rock ‘n roll way, while always retaining the rebelliousness of it’s roots.